Akron Art Library

About the Artist

Emily Sullivan Smith carefully gilded this appropriated image of hunters displaying their kill of passenger pigeons. The work investigates the tenuous balance between humans and nature through the perceived abundance of natural resources. To create this image, the artist invented a process in which she digitally separated the image into several layers in Photoshop and reconstructed it by screen printing each color, with the final gold applied using a mixture of adhesive and clear ink. The process was so challenging that Sullivan Smith keeps one of the first proofs in her office as a reminder to persevere.

Sullivan Smith grew up in Kent and currently teaches at the University of Dayton. She previously worked as an art handler at the Akron Art Museum and was featured in the exhibition Heavy Metal. Learn more about her work at: emilysullivansmith.com